News & Events



Migrant Ministry Update in the Rio Grande Valley, Texas

from Fr. Bob Charlton, SS.CC.

The latest shrill objections to migrants crossing the boarder voiced  by Texas  Governor Greg Abbott and others is that they represent a threat to public health as carriers of COVID-19 and its variants. These objections defy the facts. Indeplendently from the migration, Texas is in a COVID crisis among the unvaccinated in the larger cities: Houston, Dallas, San Antonio and Austin. But this crisis is not relatied to those crossing the boarder. The crisis of the unvacccinated is the consequence of politcal leadership that ignores and/or denies science. Now the situation is so critical in Texas' larger cities that the Governor has made a nationwide appeal for medical stafff to come to Texas and help care for those who refused to be vaccinated and whoa re not hospitalized with the virus. It is true since the expiration of TITLE 42 that there is a new  migrant surge. It is also true that their COVID positivity rate is higher (now 9%) than a few months ago (then 4%). But the CDC and the Rio Grande Valley medical community do not think the migrants are endangering the public since those testing positive are quarantined in area hotels or temporary tent shelters until the illness has passed.

Receiving migrants at Queen of PeaceThe July expiration of TITLE 42, a Trump Administration rule that enabled Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) to reject migrants as threats to public health, is the reason for a new surge in people crossing the border. Once migrants have been processed and legally released into the United States by CBP, Catholic Charities (CC) of the Diocese of Brownsville is the primary provider. The numbers are overwhelming. In McAllen, CC operates the Humanitarian Respite Center and is processing more than a thousand migrants daily. At the Respite Center and at two McAllen area churches (Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mission, staffed by the Oblates of Mary Immaculate, and First Presbyterian) and the Salvation Army, migrant-guests are fed, given clean clothing, testing for COVID, (and if positive placed in area hotels or temporary shelter), legal advice, coordinated transportation assistance, and voer night accomodation before traveling by bus or air to their destinations.  Overflow from McAllen comes to Harlingen where Loaves and Fishes (a not-for-profit homeless shelter) and Queen of Peace Church (staffed by Sacred Hearts) collaborate on migrant care in their two facilities. In Harlingen, the number of migrants served hasa been erratic. One day ther is no one, the next day a group of 15, the following day a group of 45 and the day after that no one.

Tuesday, August 9th, waws a big day for Queen of Peace that was featured in the Harlingen daily newspaper The Valley Morning Star.  Already, there was a call this morning to the parish office complaining about our care of migrants. The caller indicated she planned on going to another church because she did not feel safe with migrants on campus. After a long conversation, it became clear that the concerns were political (anti-Biden vs pro-Trump) with little factual knowledge of what we are doing here.  Any experienced minister will know that no matter how many times announcements are made or explanations given, the listeners sometimes have impenetrable filters.  Hence rumor, speculation, gossip, and prejudice warp the facts. After a mutually exaperating conversation, she finally concluded that we had to care for the brother or sister in need. This was pretty amazing considering where the conversation started. This experience dovetailed nicely with someone who came to a funeral yesterday celebrated for someone who died from COVID. The parishioner, who didn't know the deceased, said she'd coe to the funeral to pray for the man becaused "he was a brother to me".

Migrant covid testingThe politics of migration has been incredibly divisive nationally and here in the Rio Grande Valley too. Being from somewhere else (notably the Great City of Philadelphia), I never fail to be surprised by the negativity since half of the Queen of Peace population speaks Spanish only.  This means that, by and large, they themselves are recent immigrants and a fair percentage of those are undocumented.  Others are second and third generation bilingual Mexican-Americans with family connections along the boarder or deeper int Mexico. Most immigrants today are from the Central American triangle: Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Guatemala. But national origin doesn't seem to be a factor in the negativity.


While struggling with that questions, we are graced with the presence of our newly elected Provincail Fr. Lane Akiona, SS.CC. Father Lane is a native of topside Molokai. This is the part of the island where Father Damien built several churches but separated from the leper colony by the 2,000' pali (cliff). Father Lane was elected in June 2021 during our Provincial Chapter. Having first visited the Fathers and Brothers in the Fairhaven, Massachusetts area, now he is visiting us here in Texas.

Sacred Heart sanctuary and ratableDuring his visit he met with Bishop Flores and was the honored guest at a dinner hosted by Msgr. Gus Barrera,  dean in McAllen to which Sacred Heart in Edinburg belongs. Of course he visited both Sacred Heart and Queen of Peace to become better acquainted with our ministry here. We were grateful for his presence.

Meanwhile, the priests and deacons of the Harlingen and San Benito deaneries are engaged in meetings with representatives of Southwest Key regarding the pastoral care of unaccompanied migrant minors detained in their facilities.  There are two such, both in San Benito: Casa Antigua and Casa del Rio Grande. Both are renovated shcool buildings housing migrant youth. While in detention before being released to family members across the USA, the youth are in good dettings.  The staff are well trained, it is a safe environment, and the youth receive excellent medical attention and nutrition.  They have the opportunity to enroll in English as a Second Language classes and ample time for recreation asa well as licensed counseling. Pastoral care is an important aspect of ther residency. The priests and deacons are planning weekly Masses, prayer services and opportunities for Confession.

In the midst of all the sensationalism broadcast on TV, Social Media, and Print Media, the really sensational thing is the interteligious care given to brothers and sisters desperat to l ive in a land governed by law where security and opportunity are within reach.  Pray today for each of the volunteers extendng hospitality to the stranger.


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